If you need information, the Internet offers a wealth of resources. But if you're hunting down a person or a thing, a computer's not much help. That may soon change. Electronic tags promise to create what some call the "Internet of things," in which objects and people are connected through a virtual network. To see what this future world would be like, a pilot project involving dozens of volunteers in the University of Washington's computer science building provides the next step in social networking, wirelessly monitoring people and things in a closed environment.

  India is in the midst of a catastrophic epidemic of smoking deaths, which is expected to cause about one million deaths a year during the 2010s -- including one in five of all male deaths and one in 20 of all female deaths at ages 30-69, according to new research.

  A young scientist has discovered a previously undescribed species of parasite that infects farmed fish and produces serious disease. Single-celled parasites of the genus Spironucleus are known to produce serious illness in farmed and aquarium fish. In farmed salmon, these parasites create foul-smelling, puss-filled abscesses in muscles and internal organs. After the first outbreaks of this disease were described in farmed salmon in the late 1980's, it was assumed that the cause was Spironucleus barkhanus, which is a fairly common parasite in the intestine of wild grayling and Arctic char.

  For children who suffer from obstructive sleep apnea, a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy can provide dramatic relief and is successful in solving sleep problems for 80 to 90 percent of children, a new study found.

  According to the Chinese proverb, a bird sings because it has a song, not because it has an answer. A team of French and Brazilian researchers, however, may have the answer as to how the song of Brazilian white-browed warbler has become so well-adapted to the acoustic properties of the rainforest environment.

  Kids with active father figures are less likely to suffer psychological and behavioral problems and having a father figure around can reduce crime and enhance cognitive skills like intelligence, reasoning and language, in low-income families. Researchers are calling for father figures to be more involved in health and policy makers to promote more father-friendly policies.

  Arsenic poisoning did not kill Napoleon in Saint Helena, as affirmed by a new meticulous examination. The examination produced some surprising results. There were no significant differences in arsenic levels between when Napoleon was a boy and during his final days in Saint Helena. Another surprising finding was that the level of arsenic in all of the hair samples from 200 years ago is 100 times greater than the average level detected in samples from persons living today. At the beginning of the 19th people evidently ingested arsenic that was present in the environment in quantities that are currently considered as dangerous.

  Because of the importance of the gut to HIV disease, scientists hoped that long-term treatment with antiretroviral drugs could eradicate HIV from the gut-associated lymphoid tissue. A new study has found that this goal seems unlikely with current antiretroviral drugs.

  After the successful launch of ESA's Columbus laboratory aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis on Feb. 7, it is now time to focus on the next imminent milestone for ESA: the launch of Jules Verne, the first Automated Transfer Vehicle to be sent to the International Space Station.

  A mouse bred to have the same genetic mutation as people with myotonic dystrophy provides important clues about the cause of muscle wasting in the disorder, the most common form of muscular dystrophy that begins in adulthood. Unlike previous mouse models of the disease, these animals have a genetic mutation that causes the muscle wasting that is the most devastating element of this inherited disorder, said one of the researchers, who is also a professor of pathology and molecular and cellular biology.

  Adversaries the U.S. currently faces in Iraq rely on surprise and apparent randomness to compensate for their lack of organization, technology and firepower. If one could find some method to their madness, however, the asymmetric threat could be made significantly less serious. These scientists hope to help provide a better intelligence posture on these asymmetric threats by developing computer models that identify trends in the behaviors of the adversaries.

  Singles' bars, classified personals and dating websites are a reflection, not only of the common human desire to find a mate, but of the sense of scarcity that seems to surround the hunt. Many people participate in dating activities in the hopes of finding that special someone, yet feel as though it is an impossible task. However, thanks to an international team of psychologists, the solution may be closer than we think -- within ourselves, to be exact.

  Newborn stars peek out from beneath their natal blanket of dust in this dynamic image of the Rho Ophiuchi dark cloud from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. Called "Rho Oph" by astronomers, it's one of the closest star-forming regions to our own solar system. Located near the constellations Scorpius and Ophiuchus, the nebula is about 407 light years away from Earth. Rho Oph is a complex made up of a large main cloud of molecular hydrogen, a key molecule allowing new stars to form from cold cosmic gas, with two long streamers trailing off in different directions.

  Testing of a new device for patients with Parkinson's disease and essential tremor, a neurological movement disorder is just beginning. A study will help determine whether a new Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) technology is effective in providing relief for patients who are unable to adequately control symptoms of their disease with medication. The DBS system is a surgically implanted medical device that delivers an electrical stimulation to areas of the brain that control movement.